The masonry barbecue is a wonderful solution for making the most of and upgrading outdoor spaces to enjoy a wonderful day of fun, relaxation and preparation of great food in the open air.
Masonry barbecues also lend elegance to the garden, although at the same time they need to be constantly supervised for maintenance work. In fact, these structures, despite appearing solid and durable, in reality in contact with climatic agents and owing to long use, are subject to structural and aesthetic damage.
To remedy this and solve the problems, it is necessary to provide an intervention to renovate the masonry barbecue. The service is carried out by experts capable of developing the project and carrying out the barbecue renovation work in a workmanlike manner with the use of appropriate materials that guarantee long life.
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Masonry barbecues: features and advantages
Biemme Restauri in Tuscany has been involved in the design, implementation and intervention to renovate masonry barbecue for many years.
First of all, it is an immovable product that is placed in a specific spot in the garden or otherwise in the outdoor space of a home to obviate the need to grill many types of foods such as meat, fish and vegetables.
This barbecue is handcrafted by evaluating its shape with respect to specific needs and using materials suitable for the purpose, also to ensure a long service life. At the design stage, one must choose the precise place where to fix it and perhaps taking into account possible needs during the summer period including being near a tree that provides a shaded area.
One can indulge in the aesthetic part by providing the necessary spaces to store wood, charcoal and all the tools used for proper cooking of food.
The materials must be able to withstand very high temperatures and at the same time make cooking easier.
The advantage of a masonry barbecue is to have a product that is customized to the specific needs of style but also of the space available, thus creating an area properly dedicated to entertaining and eating food. The main disadvantage is probably to have to take care of it over time with maintenance or renovation work.
Do masonry barbecues crack?
Unfortunately, like all other building constructions, masonry barbecues also crack with the passage of time and especially with severe temperature fluctuations.
In fact, problems are triggered not only by harsh winter temperatures but also by excess heat in the summertime.
Although one may think of protecting the barbecue with the use of a custom-made tarpaulin or any other kind of product, it is difficult to avoid this.
The only result that could be achieved with a minimum of maintenance and shrewdness is to delay the appearance of the problem.
Crack in the barbecue? Here's how to repair it
Masonry barbecues have a tendency to crack and, more importantly, can exhibit the appearance of the typical crack over time.
This is a problem that many people tend to believe only affects the physical appearance, but in reality it can lead to further damage from the point of view of the barbecue structure.
The reasons why a crack forms undoubtedly relate to the action of climatic agents but also to other suboptimal situations such as using wood in a barbecue that obviously should only run on charcoal. In fact, wood generates higher temperatures so a more appropriate material such as granulated marble should be chosen at the design stage.
Another case is that of using too much wood with the advice never to exceed 3 kg of wood at the same time and with the shrewdness of lighting the fire slowly to allow the structure to expand, eliminating any moisture present.
Another typical mistake that facilitates the formation of the crack is neglect during the winter period, without providing for the use of a sheet that protects from the cold temperatures.
A DIY intervention can be considered, perhaps grouting the crack with common products, obtaining, however, a result that at first glance might appear to be optimal but in reality, is not.
It is necessary to turn to professionals to carry out an intervention to renovate the masonry barbecue and eliminate the cracks with the use of refractory mastic and silicone glue to fill any empty space created by the crack.
Renovate the masonry barbecue
Relying on a specialized company for the necessary intervention to renovate a masonry barbecue means being able to eliminate any structural defects and get back a practically new product.
With the intervention, the damage done to the barbecue due to an accidental impact or a temperature excursion that literally cracked and damaged the materials is resolved. In addition, cracks are treated functionally with the use of innovative materials designed specifically for this kind of issue.
For example, the company uses refractory barbecue mastic, which should be applied to the surface after thoroughly cleaning it.
Any traces of rust on the metal surface that may be present must be removed and porous surfaces such as concrete and bricks must be moistened.
This is a real sealant that needs to be used carefully and, moreover, requires about 24 hours of rest before you can proceed with gradually overheating the treated surfaces so as to achieve perfect hardening and avoid any kind of future problems. Once the renovation work is done, one must also take care of the coating of the barbecue, in order to give it again an aesthetic appearance in line with one's expectations.
There are many options considered, but actually a very good match is obtained with the use of a quartz paint.
It proves functional especially if there are rough and porous surfaces that need to be customized according to a specific style. Among other things, with this kind of finish you slow down the phenomenon of wear and tear and achieve a smoothing effect on the surface.
Quartz paint is in fact a special material enriched with microscopic grains of quartz that are reduced through a process to powder and mixed with water and synthetic resins. Among the main characteristics is that the application of quartz paint is extremely simple and able to provide additional durability due to its ability to resist weathering. In addition, it fills in any imperfections caused by the use of rough surfaces and prevents the formation of mold.
How long does a masonry barbecue last?
Having a masonry barbecue in one's backyard is certainly an unquestionable advantage because it enriches the beauty of the outdoor space and at the same time proves useful for preparing food for outdoor consumption.
But how long does a masonry barbecue last? A legitimate question if you take into account the not insignificant costs required for its construction.
Much depends on the quality of the materials used. There are barbecues that can last up to 15 or 20 years while others can go even longer provided that, for example, quartz paint is used to protect against the action of climatic agents and, above all, proper maintenance must be performed.
As already pointed out, the barbecue must be protected with special tarpaulins during the winter season to shelter it from temperature changes that especially occur at night.
How to light the masonry barbecue
The masonry barbecue is not only a product to be used during daylight hours but also at night. In fact, there is nothing nicer than spending a wonderful evening outdoors in good company and with the opportunity to try your hand at preparing grilled meats, fish or vegetables.
To do this, however, it is necessary to provide a lighting system for the entire barbecue area in order to realize when the cooking is finished but also to eat without problems.
Today the lighting industry offers so many options with lamps and other products that use solar energy to illuminate all spaces. When designing the lighting system, it is important to avoid placing cables in places where there is a sharp rise in temperatures, otherwise there could be no small risk.
Better to choose lamps and LEDs with an internal rechargeable battery. This is a removable structure that provides for a special screw mount or with the system of magnetic attachment, to place the light point in any area: a practical and functional solution.